


Losing Time

by LiraelClayr007



Series: My 2018 - 31 Days of Ficmas! [20]
Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Christmas, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-24
Updated: 2018-12-24
Packaged: 2019-09-26 00:15:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 712
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17131391
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LiraelClayr007/pseuds/LiraelClayr007
Summary: Rose realizes she's missed Christmas, and the Doctor never thought to tell her.





	Losing Time

Another morning on the TARDIS.

Not really morning, Rose reminds herself. No morning on a time ship. She smiles sleepily, hearing the now-familiar phrase in the Doctor’s voice.

“Maybe not morning,” she says to her empty bedroom, yawning and stretching under her heavy quilt, “but definitely time for tea.”

The Doctor finds her in the galley, hands cupped around her mug, head bent over so she can breathe in the revitalizing steam from the tea. “Mornin’ Rose,” he says, voice chipper.

“Ha!” she barks, poking him in the chest. “You say it too! Whatever happened to ‘No morning on a time ship’?”

He rolls his eyes. “It’s just an expression.”

A bit smug, she sips her tea.

“You’re in a good mood,” the Doctor says. “What’s that you’re humming?”

Rose looks up in surprise. “Was I humming? I didn’t even notice.”

“It sounds suspiciously like Christmas carols. Candy canes and silver lanes, or some such nonsense.”

“ _ Nonsense _ ? What’s  _ nonsense _ about  _ Christmas _ ? And honestly,  _ is _ it Christmastime? My head’s a bit muddled from all this flitting about in time, I can’t wrap my head around if it’s December or October or June.”

Completely ignoring her first question, the Doctor gives her a very Time Lord look. “For you,” he says, considering, “it’s February third.”

“February!” Her eyes blaze. “So I missed Christmas  _ and _ New Years? And you didn’t think to tell me? I suppose you figured I wouldn’t be interested. Too many other things going on to worry about human things like Christmas.”

“I--well--I took you to that snowy planet, didn’t I? I thought that was a nice time.”

“We were attacked with exploding snowballs!”

“That’s hardly the point.”

Rose stands so forcefully she knocks her chair to the floor, but she’s too upset to notice.

“Rose, I--” the Doctor starts, but she puts her hands in front of her like a shield.

“I just can’t right now, Doctor. Just…” She feels adrift in time, and she wants to hold onto the pillar of stability that is the Doctor, but she’s too confused. She pushes past to the door. “I just can’t.”

* * *

_ knock knock _

Rose doesn’t answer. She knows he won’t go away, but she still doesn’t know what to say.

_ knock knock knock _

Traveling with the Doctor has been the best time of her entire life. Sometimes she wonders if she spent the first nineteen years of her life standing still, waiting for someone to take hold of her hand and say, “Run!” But she’s still human. She doesn’t want to forget about human things. Does he expect that of her?

“Rose, please open the door.”

She stares at the ceiling above her bed, counting to ten, then rolls onto her stomach and slides off the bed onto her feet.

“Rose?”

Taking a deep breath, she opens the door. The Doctor’s worried face is looking back at her. “I’m sorry, Rose,” he says, and she can hear in his voice that he means it. “It never even crossed my mind to think about what you were missing back at home. We kept so busy, hopping from one time to another, from planet to planet. And nearly every time, discounting the times the TARDIS had her own way, I was just trying to make you smile.” He smiles himself, then adds, “I’ve grown quite attached to your smile.”

“Just my smile?” she asks, charmed in spite of herself.

He winks. “More or less.”

_ He’s  _ **_too_ ** _ charming _ , she thinks. Shaking her head a bit to clear it she says, “Doctor, I love bein’ out here with you. It’s--honestly, there aren’t even words. It’s like when Dorothy walked out of her house in Munchkinland: the world isn’t all grey anymore, it’s in brilliant colors. But I don’t want to lose who I am swirling around in the time vortex. I’m still Rose Tyler, human girl, citizen of Earth. I want to hold onto that. With one hand at least.” She bites her lip and puts out a hand, hoping he’ll take the hint...and her hand.

Instead, he reaches into his pocket. “I brought you a present,” he says. Into her waiting hand he puts a candy cane.

“Any day can be Christmas on a time ship,” he says. “How about today?”

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> 31 Days of Ficmas || day 20 - candy canes
> 
> This was originally going to be _very_ different. Fluffy and sweet. But somehow it went in a different direction! I think it turned out okay, though, and at least it has a happy ending! *sigh*


End file.
